1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to screw caps that cover heads of screws, and more particularly to screw caps for portable electronic devices. The invention relates to a contemporarily filed application titled “EXPANDABLE SCREW COVER” and having the same assignee with the instant invention.
2. Prior Art
Nowadays, major parts of a portable electronic device such as a mobile phone are generally attached together with screws. Where one of the parts is the housing of the mobile phone, the head of each screw is conventionally exposed at an outer surface of the housing. This detracts from the aesthetic appearance of the mobile phone. Therefore in more recent times, manufacturers have configured a motherboard to be attached to a first half-shell of a housing of the mobile phone with screws, with a second half-shell of the housing being attached to the first half-shell by other means such as snap-fitting. In this way, the heads of the screws are hidden within the housing. For example, ERICSSON's mobile phone model no. T68 adopts the above-mentioned newer type of securing means.
However, assembly of the above-mentioned new kind of portable electronic device is much more complicated than assembly of the more conventional, less aesthetic type of portable electronic device. Therefore, some modem portable electronic devices still adopt securing of an upper cover to a lower cover thereof with screws. In addition, a cylindrical cap made of soft plastic is engaged in each screw hole so that it covers the screw head. The diameter of the cap is slightly larger than the diameter of the screw hole, so that the cap interferentially fits in the screw hole and does not fall out. For example, SAMSUNG's mobile phone model no. N188 adopts this type of aesthetic securing means. However, in disassembly, a hard, sharp tool needs to be inserted between the cap and the housing. The caps have to be removed from the housing one by one, which is very laborious. Moreover, because the caps are made of soft plastic, they are easily damaged and distorted during normal use of the portable electronic device. This not only reduces their aesthetic appearance, but can also make disassembly more difficult and inconvenient.
Therefore, a screw cap for a portable electronic device which overcomes the above-described disadvantages is desired.